Uncertainty of the Offshore Wind Energy Resource Assessment due to Long-term Variability

Abstract. This paper deals with a new concept for the conversion of far-offshore wind energy into sustainable fuel. It relies on autonomous sailing energy ships and manned support tankers. Energy ships are wind-propelled ships that generate electricity using water turbines attached underneath their hull. Since energy ships are not grid-connected, they include onboard power-to-X plants for storage of the produced energy. In the present work, the energy vector X is methanol. In the first part of this study (Babarit et al., 2020), an energy ship design has been proposed and its energy performance has been assessed. In this second part, the aim is to estimate the energy and economic performance of such system. In collaboration with ocean engineering, marine renewable energy and wind-assisted propulsion’s experts, the energy ship design of the first part has been revised and updated. Based on this new design, a complete FARWIND energy system is proposed, and its costs (CAPEX and OPEX) are estimated. Results of the models show (i) that this FARWIND system could produce approximately 70,000 tonnes of methanol per annum (approximately 400 GWh per annum of chemical energy) at a cost in the range 1.2 to 3.6 €/kg, (ii) that this cost may be comparable to that of methanol produced by offshore wind farms in the long term, and (iii) that FARWIND-produced methanol (and offshore wind farms-produced methanol) could compete with gasoline on the EU transportation fuel market in the long term.

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Offshore wind energy resource assessment under techno-economic and social-ecological constraints

Ocean & Coastal Management ◽

10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2017.10.007 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 152 ◽

pp. 77-87 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

V. Magar ◽

M.S. Gross ◽

L. González-García

Keyword(s):

Wind Energy ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Resource Assessment ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Offshore Wind Energy ◽

Ecological Constraints ◽

Social Ecological

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Exploitation of the far-offshore wind energy resource by fleets of energy ships – Part 2: Updated ship design and cost of energy estimate

Wind Energy Science ◽

10.5194/wes-6-1191-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (5) ◽

pp. 1191-1204

Author(s):

Aurélien Babarit ◽

Félix Gorintin ◽

Pierrick de Belizal ◽

Antoine Neau ◽

Giovanni Bordogna ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wind Energy ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Wind Farms ◽

Energy Performance ◽

Ship Design ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Offshore Wind Energy ◽

Ocean Engineering ◽

Offshore Wind Farms

Abstract. This paper deals with a new concept for the conversion of far-offshore wind energy into sustainable fuel. It relies on autonomous sailing energy ships and manned support tankers. Energy ships are wind-propelled ships that generate electricity using water turbines attached underneath their hull. Since energy ships are not grid-connected, they include onboard power-to-X plants for storage of the produced energy. In the present work, the energy vector X is methanol. In the first part of this study, an energy ship design was proposed, and its energy performance was assessed. In this second part, the aim is to update the energy and economic performance of such a system based on design progression. In collaboration with ocean engineering, marine renewable energy and wind-assisted propulsion experts, the energy ship design of the first part has been revised. Based on this new design, a complete FARWIND energy system is proposed, and its costs (CAPEX and OPEX) are estimated. Results of the models show (i) that this FARWIND system could produce approximately 70 000 t of methanol per annum (approximately 400 GWh per annum of chemical energy) at a cost in the range EUR 1.2 to 3.6/kg, (ii) that this cost may be comparable to that of methanol produced by offshore wind farms in the long term and (iii) that FARWIND-produced methanol (and methanol produced by offshore wind farms) could compete with gasoline on the EU transportation fuel market in the long term.

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2016 Offshore Wind Energy Resource Assessment for the United States

10.2172/1324533 ◽

2016 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Walt Musial ◽

Donna Heimiller ◽

Philipp Beiter ◽

George Scott ◽

Caroline Draxl

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Wind Energy ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Resource Assessment ◽

The United States ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Offshore Wind Energy

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Offshore Wind Energy: Resource Assessment

The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry - Alternative Energy Resources ◽

10.1007/698_2020_630 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 67-91

Author(s):

Garlapati Nagababu ◽

V. S. K. V. Harish

Keyword(s):

Wind Energy ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Resource Assessment ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Offshore Wind Energy

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Exploitation of the far-offshore wind energy resource by fleets of energy ships. Part B. Cost of energy

10.5194/wes-2019-101 ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Aurélien Babarit ◽

Simon Delvoye ◽

Gaël Clodic ◽

Jean-Christophe Gilloteaux

Keyword(s):

Wind Energy ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Energy Performance ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Offshore Wind Energy ◽

Transportation Fuel ◽

Cost Of Energy ◽

Water Turbines ◽

The Eu

Abstract. This paper deals with a new concept for the conversion of far-offshore wind energy into sustainable fuel. It relies on autonomous sailing energy ships and manned support tankers. Energy ships are wind-propelled ships that generate electricity using water turbines attached underneath their hull. Since energy ships are not grid-connected, they include onboard power-to-X plants for storage of the produced energy. In the present work, the energy vector is methanol. In the first part of this study (Babarit et al., submitted), an energy ship design has been proposed and its energy performance has been assessed. In this second part, the aim is to estimate the energy and economic performance of the whole system. Thus, an energy and economic model has been developed which is presented in the paper. Results show that an initial FARWIND system could produce approximately 100,000 tonnes of methanol per annum (approximately 550 GWh per annum of chemical energy) at a cost in the range 150 to 325 €/MWh, and that FARWIND-produced methanol could compete with gasoline on the EU transportation fuel market in the long term.

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Offshore Wind Energy Resource Assessment from Satellite Data Observations and WRF in Porto Santo Island

10.5194/wes-2020-7 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Fabiola S. Pereira ◽

Carlos S. Silva

Keyword(s):

Wind Energy ◽

Weibull Distribution ◽

Energy Production ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Resource Assessment ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Electricity Production ◽

Offshore Wind Energy ◽

Wind Resource Assessment ◽

Wind Resource

Abstract. The vast majority of isolated electricity production systems such as Islands depends on fossil fuels. Porto Santo Island, a Portuguese UNESCO Biosphere Reserve candidate from Madeira Archipelago situated in the Atlantic Ocean, aims to become a sustainable territory in order to reduce its carbon footprint. A sustainable pathway goes through the integration of renewable energy in the electricity production system, in particular, the potential of offshore wind energy. The scope of this work has three main purposes: (1) the offshore wind resource assessment in Porto Santo Island, (2) the determination of a zone of interest regarding the combination of different parameters such us the bathymetry, distance to the coastline and integrated in the national situation plan of maritime space (3) the estimation of the annual energy production from the best-fitted Weibull Distribution. In the first place, a methodology for data analysis was defined processing netcdf data regarding a ten year wind hindcast from WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) atmospheric model at 100 m above mean sea level from Ocean Observatory, annual and monthly mean offshore wind energy resource maps were created and a comparison with about 20 year times series of surface winds derived from remotely satellite scatterometer observations at different locations was made. Results show that the average annual mean wind speeds reach the range of 6.6–7.6 m/s in specific areas, situated in the northern part of Porto Santo Island with a Weibull distribution shape parameter (k) of 2.4–2.9. Based on the results, the wind resource assessment, the estimation of the annual wind energy production and capacity factors were calculated from the best-fitted Weibull distribution for each of the geographical coordinates selected. Comparisons with observational data show that WRF model is a proficient wind generating tool. The technical energy production potential and a priority zoning for offshore wind power development is performed using wind turbine generators of 3.3 MW–8.0 MW capacity, that could generate between 12 and 26 GWh of energy per year, while avoiding CO2 emissions. The results show that an offshore wind farm plan is an eligible choice, with an average annual wind power density reaching about 300  W/m2 at 100 m height in the north region.

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Exploring the Grid Value of Offshore Wind Energy in Oregon

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14154435 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (15) ◽

pp. 4435

Author(s):

Travis C. Douville ◽

Dhruv Bhatnagar

Keyword(s):

Wind Energy ◽

Cost Model ◽

Energy Resource ◽

Energy Resources ◽

Offshore Wind ◽

Offshore Wind Energy ◽

Renewable Energy Resources ◽

Energy Potential ◽

Resource Complementarity ◽

Wind Energy Potential

The significant offshore wind energy potential of Oregon faces several challenges, including a power grid which was not developed for the purpose of transmitting energy from the ocean. The grid impacts of the energy resource are considered through the lenses of (i) resource complementarity with Variable Renewable Energy resources; (ii) correlations with load profiles from the four balancing authorities with territory in Oregon; and (iii) spatial value to regional and coastal grids as represented through a production cost model of the Western Interconnection. The capacity implications of the interactions between offshore wind and the historical east-to-west power flows of the region are discussed. The existing system is shown to accommodate more than two gigawatts of offshore wind interconnections with minimal curtailment. Through three gigawatts of interconnection, transmission flows indicate a reduction of coastal and statewide energy imports as well as minimal statewide energy exports.

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